Brewery says it doesn’t want to be associated with fads including “doing a shoey”.
As marketing tools go, one that alienates a section of your potential customer base is risky, but it is certainly original.
The Lord Nelson Brewery based in Sydney is insisting that consumers of their new Pale Ale are aged over 35, despite the legal drinking age in Australia being 18. The company’s decision has been made, it claims, as a “protective measure” in response to Aussie fads including ‘doing a shoey’: pouring alcoholic beverages into a shoe, normally your own, and drinking from the shoe.
The fads are seen as synonymous with younger drinkers, and Lord Nelson MD, Blair Hayden, doesn’t want them becoming associated with their Three Sheets Pale Ale.
“If you weren’t born when our original beer was then it’s not for you,” said Hayden. “This is not a stance we wanted to take but, unfortunately, with every damn musician in Australia being forced to do this whole shoey thing, we didn’t have a choice.
“For over 30 years we’ve focused on creating quality beers that are refined and well-balanced. Three Sheets Pale Ale remains our flagship brew and is testament to being true to ourselves and not following trends and ‘in’ styles. Until the young ones cut their weird drinking habits out, it’ll be reserved for the over-35s.”
However, the brewery will offer those drinkers aged under 35 who promise to “savour, not skol” the Pale Ale the option of sidestepping the age restriction.
Three Sheets Pale Ale (ABV 4.9 per cent) is a drink created with 95 per cent American hop varieties and five per cent British malts.
